From Pop-Ups to Policy: How Bentonville Built Its New Community Code
Bentonville, AR — After nearly two years of workshops, surveys, and public discussions, Bentonville’s vision for growth is entering a new chapter. The city’s Plan Bentonville initiative — its largest community engagement effort to date — has culminated in the creation of the Bentonville Community Code, a unified set of zoning and development standards meant to “promote what we want and preserve what we love.”
The effort began in Fall 2023, when city planners launched the Plan Bentonville website and started gathering input from residents, business owners, and community advocates. More than 2,000 survey responses helped shape early conversations about housing, transportation, and neighborhood character.
By February 2024, those ideas took shape during Design Week — a six-day event that invited residents to imagine the future of Bentonville block by block. From pop-ups at the Amazeum and 8th Street Market to packed open houses at Thaden Fieldhouse, more than 600 residents took part, helping define what Bentonville’s next phase of growth should look like.
Following months of revisions, the city released an interactive online map in July 2024, letting residents comment parcel-by-parcel on proposed zoning changes. The response was immediate — over 1,500 comments poured in, leading to additional office hours and follow-up events at local gathering spots like Airship, The Ledger, and the Farmers Market.
All that input paid off. In February 2025, the Bentonville City Council unanimously adopted the Plan Bentonville updates, including the new Future Land Use Map and Alignment Policy. With that foundation in place, planners turned their attention to implementation — launching the Bentonville Community Code to replace the city’s outdated development regulations.
Unveiled in July 2025, the Community Code moves away from traditional “use-based” zoning and instead organizes growth by character — focusing on how places look, feel, and function. It combines zoning, subdivision, and design rules into one clear, user-friendly document.
Residents can now explore the proposed districts and maps through the city’s online Zoning Map Review Portal at planbentonville.com, where the motto still rings true: “Promote what we want. Preserve what we love.”
